Knight of the Pridelands
by Husker97
Summary: Sequel to "Lee's Pride." I honestly can't write a summery without giving the ending to the first story away, so all I can say is read and enjoy! And I also do not own any of the original Disney character, just my own OC's.
1. Chapter 1

I walked alongside Mufasa through the endless trees and lush grass. We stayed silent as the trees suddenly ended, and we stepped into a sort of colony. Where I had seen hundreds of trees one moment ago, there stood just as many stone buildings in there place. People now walked on stone streets, I felt like I was in a city for the first time in months. As we continued on, I saw that there were shops and stores mixed in all throughout the city. Two children ran passed me and laughed as one of them tagged the other. A woman I assumed was their mother apologized and ran after them.  
"Is this Heaven?" I asked The great lion standing beside me.  
He chuckled, "That's one name for it, yes."  
Without warning, I bumped into a solid piece of metal. I grunted before locking eyes with a middle-aged man in full body armor. The kind you expect a knight to were in battle. A red cross was in the middle of the chest, and a sword at his hip. He had brown hair that he slicked back and red eyes. All of these qualities were quickly forgotten when I noticed the wings on his back. Two wings the size of eagles were on his back. At first glance, they looked white, but after looking at them a second time, I noticed they were silver. They looked like they could carry him for miles or knock even Sam to the ground if he came too close. I cleared my throat before speaking.  
"Sorry about that."  
The knight smiled, "Think nothing of it, my boy, Oh, Mufasa, is this one with you?"  
My grandfather chuckled, "Yes, Randell, this is Lee. Lee, this is Sir Randell of the Angel Knights."  
Randell stretched out his hand, "So this is the famous human Prince of the Pridelands? Mufasa's told me a great deal about you Lee. I've also seen you in action once or twice. Your skill with a spear is something that can't be duplicated."  
I smile sheepishly, "Well, thank you. But, how did you see me fight?"  
He motioned for me to follow him to a small cave in the distance. Looking down at Mufasa, he nodded before walking that way as well. With a shrug and I sigh, I did the same. When we did get in the cave, we found it was already occupied by two people. One was a strikingly gorgeous woman that looked to be around my age. She had caramel colored skin and jet black hair that was slightly curly. The other was a man that also looked to be in his mid to late teen's. He was a tad bit shorter than me but looked just as built. Blonde hair and dark blue eyes that looked like it could cut through the armor they were wearing. "Lee, this is Linda and Sean, my two best students." Randell motioned towards the two of them.  
"Hello," I said as I stuck my hand out to Linda.  
She blinked twice before smiling and shaking my hand. Her pearly white teeth could rival the sun. The guy, Sean, stared daggers at me before shaking my hand. "Children, this is Lee. He was a prince of an African kingdom called the Pridelands. He is also a skilled warrior."  
"Oh really?" Sean said with a smirk, "You like swords?"  
"No, I prefer a spear," I said, adding a smirk of my own.  
"Yeah? If you ever want to put your money where your mouth is, come to the arena."  
He stormed out of there in a flash. Linda stayed where she was for a second before smiling again and stepping up to me.  
"Forgive Sean, he gets that way around other warrior's. Especially really good looking male ones." She said the last bit with a little giggle before walking after him. Her black curls blowing in the wind. I hadn't realized I had been staring until Mufasa called to me.  
"Lee, come here please." He said, standing by the pond.  
I did make my way to the pond. Looking at Randell, the knight motioned me to look down. At first, all I was was my reflection. "I don't get it, what's supposed to happen?" "Just think of what you want to see," Mufasa explained.  
So I did.


	2. Chapter 2

Four men stood in the middle of a road in the African wilderness. Their truck had hit some sharp objects on the road and they were now in the process of fixing the tires. Two of the men, armed with Ak-47's, stood guard while the two others started replacing the last flat tire. Growing impatient, one of the armed guards called back to his comrades.

"You boy's almost done? I'd like to get back on the road before the sun goes down." he snapped in a thick British accent.

"Keep your pants on Nick, those lions aren't going to eat you. That's what the guns and traps are for."

Then, like a flash of lightning, a crossbow bolt hit one the armed men in the neck. He fell to the ground, gurgling on the blood pouring out of his mouth. The two men working on the tire were about to draw their guns before being cut down by a tall, muscular man with an ax. They both lay still with colossal gashes in their chests. Nick was about to aim his gun at the man, only for him to be taken down by a massive male lion. It's red eyes burning with a rage that could break through steel. With his canines bared, the beast was about to end this monsters life in one move, before a young voice called out to him.

"Simba!"

The king of the Pridelands turned to see Jason reloading his crossbow while coming out from behind the bushes. Still keeping his paws on the man's chest, Simba refused to let him leave.

"We can't risk these people coming back here!" Simba demanded.

"The truck, it has the same logo as on the truck that Kion and Kiara were trapped in. These people work for whoever captured them."

"All the more reason to end him now!"

"We can get information out of him! Maybe figure out who his boss is." Jason pleaded.

"Jason's right Simba, he could be valuable," Sam said.

Simba snarled as he turned to the giant of a man.

"You, stay out of this! As far as I'm concerned, you should be joining these men on the ground for being with them before. It's only at the pleading of my queen and the condition of your mate that I allow you to stay at all!"

With that, the king of the Pridelands turned back to the human beneath him and drove his fangs into his neck. Screams of agony were quickly replaced with gurgles as blood poured out of his mouth and fresh neck wounds.

Once he came up for air, Simba was breathing heavily with rage. The boy's blood dripping from his mouth and chin. Then, he turned and walked away without even looking back. Jason sighed in disappointment before turning to the truck with Sam. The two of them spent the last ten minutes gathering weapons and bodies of the men into the back of the truck before Sam drove it back to Pride Rock.

Jason took the Harley he had rode on with Lee. Ever since that day, Jason had kept his word to keep the Pridelands safe. There had been some invasion from the hyena's three times and two more encounters with poachers, counting this one.

Most of the animals in the Pridelands had grown to like Jason over time. Ma Tembo and Aminifu had shared conversations several times throughout the last two weeks after Lee's funeral. Many of the herds had happily greeted him when he walks by. Sadly, there was still one animal that had yet to show any kind of friendliness to their new protector, Kion.

The rest of the family had more or less welcomed him with open paws because of Lee's fondness of Jason before his death. Even Simba, despite being a bit more volatile once they told him the bad news, had given Jason a fair chance. But the Pridelands prince had not so much as a full sentence to Jason since he came back with Lee's body.

Once he had come to Pride Rock, he ran up the slope to find all the lions resting. Nala and Sarafina were resting beside each other while Kiara, Tiifu, and Zuri were wrestling with each other. Kion was laying down a ways away from everyone. Shujaa and his wives were resting with their cubs on the other side of the cave.

Sarafina was the first to notice Jason walking into the room. With a warm smile, she ran over and embraced him.

"Did everything go okay?" She asked

He frowned, "Not really. We had a chance to take a prisoner and get information out of him, but Simba killed him."

The old lioness sighed, "His mind is flooded with grief after... Lee."

Jason nodded, "Sometimes people can get angry when they get sad. But he was in the wrong when he took the persons life. I'm starting to question if Lee's death will effect Simba's skill as a king."

Hearing a throat being cleared brought all of the eyes in the cave to the entrance. Nonother then Simba stood at the mouth of the cave with an antelope in his jaws. He slowly stalked over to where Jason sat, staring daggers at the boy. Dropping the kill at his feet, he leaned in close with blood still dripping from his mouth.

"If you have a problem with the way I rule my kingdom, you know where the exit is."

"Simba!" Sarafina snapped.

Jason placed his hand on her neck to stop her. At first, he just stared at the king with an unfazed expression. Years of living under the thumb of a tyrant that raised him to be a killer made him a difficult man to scare. Simba bared his canines in an attempt to make him submit, but it didn't faze Jason in the slightest. With one last agitated snarl, Simba walked to the platform.

"Dinner," he called over to his children.

All of the cubs came over to the kill and started devouring it. Jason greeted all three of the girls, they solemnly greeted him back. Kion was the last to make his way over to the meal. Not saying a word, he grabbed a chunk of the meat and started walking away. Jason, despite his better judgment, called after him.

"How are you Kion?"

Hearing his name being called, the young prince turned back to the teen. The meat still lodged in his mouth. A look of pure hatred burned in his fiery red eyes as he stared down the creature that killed his big brother. As far as Kion was concerned, Jason may as well have shot Lee himself. No matter how many times he tried to connect with the young cub, Jason always got pushed away. All he did was let out an aggressive snarl before walking away.

Jason sighed as he got a chunk of meat and taking it outside to cook it. Despite getting to good terms with almost everyone he lived with Jason still preferred to eat alone. It had always been that way for him. It's not that he hadn't grown fond of the Royal family and other creatures of the Pridelands, it's just he prefers to stay isolated because the only family he ever had wasn't exactly nice to him. The best day in his life was the day he had left his tyrant of a father for the uncertainty of the outside world. But even though he wasn't around him anymore, his father left permanent scars on the boy. In more ways than one.

Despite his less than pleasant upbringing, Jason somehow found himself wanting to do good in the world. Maybe because he figured seeing the joyous expressions of the people he helped was a way for him to forget about his past. And it did, once while he was living on the streets shortly after leaving his father, Jason had saved a young girl from a burning building. The happy grin on her face as she clung to him filled Jason's heart with joy.

Another time was when he was wondering the streets of New York and had come across a homeless woman. She was in the process of begging for food, only to be shunned by people passing by. Despite not having eaten all day and not having enough money for anything else, Jason gave her his last apple anyway.

The only major difference in this situation is that there was no joy in what he was doing. Everyone he was protecting was either still wallowing in grief or straight up hating his guts. The only ones who openly appreciated him were Nala and Sarafina. Though he hoped with time, the rest of them would warm up to him.

"Hey." called a young voice.

Jason was surprised to see Kion standing at the entrance of the cave. Still wearing a look of disgust on his features as he made his way over to the human. they just stared blankly at each other for a few seconds before Kion finally spoke to Jason.

"You want to know how I am? I am barely able to hold it together as my dad has become a violent psycho and my mom hasn't stopped crying since after the funeral! And it's all thanks to you! If you are such a skilled warrior, you wouldn't have needed my brother to take that arrow for you. Why are you even still here?"

Jason waited several seconds before answering, "Because I promised your brother I would protect you."

"You should leave, we don't need you."

"Kion, I don't want you to think I'm trying to take Lee's place."

The cub's face got hostile in a second as he stepped forward. Perfectly mirroring his father's features as he bared his fangs at the boy. Kion placed his paws on Jason's lap while he inched his face close to his. The words he spat out were filled with venom and rage.

"You couldn't!"

"Kion!" called a voice from behind them.

Sarafina stood at the entrance of the cave, looking not too happy at her grandson's words towards their new protector. With an angry frown, she made her way over to the two of them. Quickly realizing the error of his actions, Kion tired to plead his case while stepping away from Jason.

"Grandma, I..."

"Inside!" She demanded.

Knowing better than to hesitate, Kion dashed into the cave without another word. Sarafina sighed with annoyance while watching her grandson disappear into the shadows. For all he did for her family, Jason deserved better then what he got here. She would be sure to let Kion know that kind of behavior would not be tolerated, especially towards someone who is selflessly trying to keep them safe.

She turned to Jason, "He will be apologizing to you, I promise."

"Don't be too hard on him, he just misses his brother."

"That's still no excuse, you do so much for us, he shouldn't be treating you like this. Neither he or Simba" Sarafina stated.

Jason just shrugged, "I've grown used to pain by now, either physical or emotional. Simba and Kion don't need to like me for me to protect them."

He heard Sarafina walk closer to him and sit down next to him. The feeling of a soft texture rub under his chin. Jason awkwardly patted her neck as she continued nuzzling him. She was smiling warmly as she finally broke away from him.

"I truly do appreciate the lengths you go to protect us. Not only in fighting off predators but for providing food and comfort. The night of the funeral, after we buried Lee, you held Nala the whole night despite barely knowing her. For someone who claims to not favor family life, you're good at it. If you wanted, maybe you could be a part of this one."

Jason looked away, "Maybe."

He felt something lay on his shoulder. Sarafina had placed her paw on his shoulder. Looking back at her, he saw she had a sad look on her face. As if she was hurt that he wouldn't jump at the chance to be her family. But truthfully, how could he be when half the creatures in said family don't even want him around.

"In time," she said before going back into the cave.

"Maybe," Jason repeated.

(Lee's POV)

"You could be Jason," I said as his image disappeared from the pond.

"It looks as though you left them in good hands with him," Mufasa said.

"Apparently," Randell agreed.

I sighed, "I just wish Kion and Simba could see that."

Mufasa patted my shoulder,"They will, in time. For now, we have some more people to see."

Just as I was about to turn around, another voice entered the cave.

"Oh, there you are."

I didn't dare to turn around at first. Not believing my ears, I looked towards Mufasa. With only a nod, he started walking towards our visitor. My eyes started to tear up when I finally faced her.

"It's really you," I said.

My grandmother smiled, "Hello Lee."

I collided with her at such a great speed, I knocked us both over. A waterfall of tears fell from my eyes as I hugged the old lioness that had died for me. She nuzzled me fiercely as I buried my face in her fur.

"I'm so sorry," I cried.

"Sorry for what Lee?"

I looked at her. The look of confusion clearly shown on her face. As if I didn't have anything to be sorry for. But I knew I did. I had killed her all because she was fatally wounded protecting me. It would have been different if I had been prepared.

"I... I shot you."

She smiled, "You saved me. I didn't suffer because of you. You brought me here."

Mufasa went over to her and nuzzled her affectionately. They looked at each other with love beaming in their eyes. Sarabi nuzzled Mufasa under the chin before looking back at me.

"Come, my grandson, I have a few surprises for you."

With a wide smile on my face, I walked by her side to a large building in the center of the city. It was a Colosseum type building, the ones that gladiators fought in ancient Rome. Randell turned towards me as we got to the front entrance.

"This is where you can spread your wings and fly."

When we entered, I immediately recognized two people. The gorgeous girl named Linda and supposed boyfriend Sean. He was currently beating the crap out of three guys with a wooden sword, while Linda was practicing archery. Her long, black hair was tied back in a ponytail and beads of sweat were dripping from her forehead. Despite that, she still looked like she just stepped out of a photo shoot she looked so good. My attention turned to Sean as he called out to me.

"So, you decided to stop by after all."

Sean still wore that scowl as he made his way to me. The three guys he was sparing with looked that just got through a war zone. He was about to get in my face before Randell got between us.

"Watch yourself, Sean. You know I don't tolerate troublemakers. Any funny business, I'm done teaching you."

Sean lost the scowl before speaking again, "Is he really that good?"

"Even better, I assure you," Sarabi interrupted.

He turned to her with an annoyed look, "Was I talking to you?"

"Hey!," I snapped, "Do you know who this is? This is Sarabi, the former queen of the Pridelands pal."

He chuckled, "Key word, former. As in no longer."

I clenched my fist before speaking again in a dangerously low voice, "Watch your mouth."

He raised his eyebrows before walking back over to a set of weapons. All of them were made out of wood, like the sword he was holding. He picked up a spear from the rack and walking back over to me. Stopping a few inches in front of Randell, he held out the spear and for the first time, he smiled.

"You want to be my sparring partner?" he asked.

Not hesitating, I walked over and kicked the stick out of his hand. Immediately, his smile vanished at the surprise of my action. Catching it mid-air, I twirled it once or twice, my lessons with Rafiki still fresh in my mind.

I looked at him, "Yeah."


	3. Chapter 3

I stood across from Sean, spear at the ready. Despite what he had just said, something made me hesitate. If we were back on earth, this guy would be on the ground bleeding already. However, this wasn't earth. Something about this place just felt different, I felt different.

"I'm told by a lot of people I'm an understanding indevidual. If you apologise to Sarabi right now, we can call this off."

He simply spat in her direction before advancing towards me. Sighing in frustration, I raised my spear just in time to block his first attack. Perreing the second, I smacked him in the cheek with the blunt end of my spear. He wore a dazed look before growling and swining at my head again. Leaning backward to dodge that strike, I jabbed him in the stomach.

"Apologise to her!" I demanded.

The sound of footsteps behind me caught my attention. A yell erupted right before a loud swush rang through the air. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw one of the other guys swing his sword in my direction. Sean brought his sword down again, I smacked it to the side. Both of their swords collided before I hit both of them in the face.

"You don't fight fair, do you?"

He smirked, "Nope."

They both advanced with their swords raised. I blocked the strikes before pushing them up and kicking the other guy in the chest. Sean tried to jab me, only for me to side step and smack him in the back of the head. He was really getting irritated, it was obviouse by his peircing glare.

All it took was one last hit to the midsection for him to loose it. With a warcry, he swung wildly at nothing in particular. The last strike was so powerful, it broke both our weapons. He then tried just tackling me, I responded by lifting him up with a yell and bodyslaming him into the dirt. I got on top of him and punched him twice before throwing him in a headlock. After fifteen seconds of struggling, he tapped out in defeat.

"Get up," I said

I dragged him over to Sarabi. She wore a smile of pride as I placed Sean in front of her.

"Apologise," I repeated.

He didn't look up,"I'm sorry."

"I accept your apology." She said.

With that, she Mufasa and I made our way to the exit. Just as I was about to step through the door, I caught a glimps of Linda. She was smiling.


	4. Chapter 4

(Lee's POV)

I walked through the city with both my grandparents beside me. Mufasa and Sarabi walked side by side, mumbling to each other. They would occasionally laugh quietly and nuzzle each other. Seeing them interact, you would think they were love-struck teenagers. It was honestly one of the most beautiful things in the world to see these two together after years of being separated.

That must have been one of the major reason's Sarabi was surprised that I felt so guilty. This is something she's wanted since losing Mufasa all those years ago. Being here, with him in a place where there were no problems was the happiest ending she could ever want. Seeing them like this brought an overwhelming sense of joy to me.

We came to one of the many marble houses in the center of the city. I stopped before we got to the stairs. Sarabi looked back at me when she saw I wouldn't walk up.

"Whose place is this?" I asked her.

She smiled, "Yours."

Stepping into it was like entering a five-star hotel. A flat screen tv hung on the wall, below it was a collection of DVDs. A black leather couch to lounge in, a large fridge was placed in the corner. There was another room in the back. In it, there was a king sized bed and full body workout equipment. The entire place smelled like Steak, which was what was cooking in the oven.

I smiled, "Yup, this is Heaven."

"I'm glad you like it," Sarabi said.

"Not that I'm complaining, but who did all this? How did you know what to put in this place?"

"We helped them," Called a voice from the entrance.

My entire body went cold. Every sound in the world was put on mute the moment I heard that voice. It was a voice I had almost forgotten for not hearing it for so long. Shaking wildly, I turned to the direction of the voice. Tears threatened to spill out even before I was met with two silhouettes. One was taller, the other was shorter and holding something. Part of me still couldn't believe what was right in front of me.

"It... it is you," I whispered.

The smaller silhouette smiled, "Hey big brother."

I let out a cry as I collided with the two of them. They both wrapped their arms around me as we sank to the floor. Together we sat there, all of our tears streaming down our faces as quiet cries filled the room. I kissed them both on the forehead before breaking apart from them.

"My girls," I said smiling at them.

My mother looked at me. Her raven black hair and dark blues eyes glowed with an otherworldly beauty. The same could be said about Jenny, she looked even more adorable here then she did on earth. Just like I noticed the glowing complexion of my skin when I first got here, it was on mom and Jenny too. Almost as if we were all unmistakably beautiful now.

Something moved against my chest. I felt a familiarly shaped object press hard against my stomach before a small voice erupted from the object in Jenny's hands.

"You're squishing me!" it said.

I stepped back and looked down to see a lion cub. My jaw dropped when I saw how much he looked like Kion. Aside from a brown tuft of hair on his head and a bit less size on this cub; he and Kion could be twins. He had Simba's eyes and fur color. When I saw the similarities, that's when it hit me. This was...

"Kopa?"

His ears fell flat against his head in a frightened manner as he sunk down against Jenny's chest.

"H- how do you know my name?" he asked.

Sarabi used this moment to walk up close to Jenny. She nuzzled Kopa gently, causing him to look at her. His posture got less frightened at the sight of a familiar face.

"Grandma? What are you doing in this place? Why are you with him?" he asked, pointing his paw at me.

She chuckled, "Kopa, sweetie, this is Lee, can you say hello?"

He looked at me, "Hi." he said in a shy manner.

"Hi," I repeated.

Suddenly, his eyes grew wide as he looked back up at me. It looked like he wanted to say something, but the words must have gotten caught in his throat. Looking back at Sarabi, he raised his eyebrows as if he was silently asking a question. All she did was smile and nod in response, that caused him to look back at me with an awestruck expression.

"You're that Lee? The Lee that lived in the Pridelands? They call you the human prince."

I nodded, "That's me."

He jumped off Jenny's chest and landed on mine. I had to throw my arms up to stop him from falling on the ground. Kopa nuzzled my chest with a wide grin on his face. It's almost as if he had been waiting to see me for a long time.

"It's so good to finally meet you," He said, "Papa and Grandma have told me everything about you. I've seen you in the pond too; you protected my mom from an army of hyenas!"

I chuckled, "Well, I don't know if it was an army, maybe just twenty or thirty."

He frowned, "You look different though. Wasn't your hair a lot longer when you were on earth?"

"Hey yeah, what happened to your hair, Lee?" Jenny asked.

"I... cut it."

"Why?" She asked.

"After Sarabi died, I felt different. Having to execute her myself made me feel like a monster. Almost as if I wasn't me anymore. The long hair was Lee's thing, I told myself I didn't deserve it anymore."

"You say that like it's a bad thing. It wasn't, you brought my grandma back to me. I can't thank you enough for that." Kopa assured, smiling down at me.

Mufasa smiled at me as he placed a paw on my shoulder. Sarabi nuzzled my arm as Kopa rested against my chest. My mom and Jenny came over to us and wrapped their arms around me. We all sank to the ground as tears welled and fell down my face for the tenth time since coming here. It felt as though time slowed down, and everything got quiet. All that could be heard was my crying and the wind blowing outside.

"Lee, what you did was out of love. You should never feel bad about that," Mufasa told me.

Sarabi got in my face, "Never." She said.

I nodded before burying my face in her fur. Just as the case with Jenny, my mom and myself, her physical appearance was stunning. It was in evidence to the feel of her fur on my face. Even when she on earth, sometimes her fur was madded or dirty. Here, it was sleek and clean, it even smelled like fresh flowers.

When we finally broke up, I stood before ruffling Kopa's head just like I did with Kion. He giggled happily before nuzzling me one more time. After handing him back to Jenny, I went to my room to compose myself. Collapsing onto my king sized bed, I sighed as one more tear fell down my face. This one wasn't a sorrowful tear, this one was one of complete happiness.

"Lee, some people are here to see you." my mother called.

I went out of my room and my jaw hit the floor at the sight of who it was. Standing next to my mother and sister, was Linda. She was dressed in a silk black dress and matching stilettos. Her matching black hair was curled and fell down her shoulders. I was so stunned at her beauty, her words didn't come to my ears at first. I had to ask her to repeat herself.

She giggled, "You've got a little bit of drool on your chin."

Jenny handed me a napkin. After hastily wiping my face, I finally noticed the second person who was with Linda. It was a man with a number one buzz cut and a serious look on his face. Murderous red eyes with black eyebrows made him look quite intimidating too. Almost as if he was a guy who would kill you, chop off your head and mail it to your grandmother. Even with the white dress shirt, his chest and arms popped out as if they were 3-D.

Linda stepped forward, "Lee, this is Logan, Sean's older brother."

Logan came closer to me. Now realizing he was a few inches taller than me. That was one other thing to find terrifying about the guy. And now I know this is the big brother of the guy I tossed around earlier today. We were inches apart now, part of me was wondering if I should hold out my hand or brace myself for a fight.

He held out his hand, "Let me congratulate you."

I shook it, "What for, may I ask?"

"You knocked my punk little brother on his ass. Not many people can do that. After all, he is Randell's second-best pupil."

"Who's the first?" I asked.

"Yours truly." He said.

"Congratulations."

Sarabi stepped up, "It's good to see you again, Logan."

"Same to you, Sarabi. I heard my brother said a few unflattering things to you. That's why Lee fought him, isn't it? Sean would have come to dinner, but he's still licking his wounds."

"Dinner time." my mother called.

All the humans sat down at a large table, while the lions ate raw meat on large plates. Steaks and potatoes were one thing I never believed I would eat again. Mom and Jenny sat beside me, while Linda and Logan sat across from me. Seeing them both dressed in fine clothes while I was still in sweats made me feel even more self-conscious than usual around her. Even the simplest act of her wiping her face with a napkin would be enough to draw me away from my meal and stare at her.

"Lee," Logan called.

I jumped, "What? Did you say something?"

"I was asking you what you where did you learn your skill with a spear? That kind of discipline Linda said you displayed in your sparing session with Sean must have come from a wise teacher."

"A wise teacher he was. His name was Rafiki, he was the Shaman of the Pridelands. It's Ironic because if you looked at him, you wouldn't guess he was some kind of badass martial artists. At least that's what I thought when I first saw him. And he ended up knocking me on my ass. But he taught me afterward; the end result was what I did to Sean."

Logan nodded, "Impressive. Linda is quite the archer herself. If you ever want to learn how to shoot a bow, go to her."

Linda blushed, "Sure, the next time you want to go to the Colesium, look me up."

I nodded before returning to my dinner. The rest of the evening was spent in relative silence. So much was still being processed in my mind. I would occasionally wince as I swallowed my food, indicating something must be wrong with my stomach.

"Lee, are you alright?" Linda asked me.

"My stomach kind of hurts. I guess the fight with Sean took more out of me then I thought."

"I can take a look at it for you after dinner if you want. When I'm not practicing with a bow, I'm learning how to heal," she explained.

We both went to my room after dinner was over. When I sat down on my bed, Linda excused herself before going into my bathroom. She came back a few seconds later with something wrapped in a towel. Darting her eyes up and down, she cleared her throat before speaking again.

"You're going to need to... take off your shirt."

I begrudgingly did so. It's not that I wasn't confident in my appearance, especially here, but again with a woman like Linda you couldn't help but be nervous. All Linda did at first was stare blankly at the area. After asking her how it looked and not getting an answer, I chuckled before snapping my fingers and waving my hand in front of her face.

"What?" She asked.

"I said how does it look?" I repeated.

"Chiseled and tan."

"I... meant the bruise."

"Oh, that's not so bad."

She giggled nervously before placing the object on my lower abdomen. An instant cold sensation spread through that area as she held it there for a good minute and a half. We were just a few inches apart. Her gorgeous features on her face were even more stunning up close. Every fiber of me was screaming at me to lean forward and kiss her. I did lean forward, and to my surprise so did she. She blinked twice before giving me the smile she had when I beat Sean earlier today. A smile that made me think I was the best person in the world. Just an inch apart now.

A sudden giggling noise from outside the door made us both jump in surprise. Linda looked behind her when the noise came a second time. I put my finger up to my lips to tell her not to make a noise as I slowly got up from my bed. When I made my way to the door, I instantly saw a little touch of fur stick in through the door.

"Gotcha!" I shouted as I seized Kopa by the tail.

"Jenny, I'm done for, run for it!" Kopa shouted.

My sister ran for her life out the front door. I ran after her until she ran out the front door. After watching her disappear into one of the houses across the way, I brought Kopa back to my room. Linda was still sitting at my bedside, laughing at the events that just occurred. Still holding him by the tail, I walked him over and dropped him on my bed and held him down.

"Look who I found," I told Linda.

She giggled, "Why you little sneak."

Kopa just smiled sheepishly, "What are you going to do to me?"

I tickled Kopa's stomach without mercy. He let out a howl of laughter as I continued my assault. Linda just laughed as she watched the whole thing. After a minute and a half of doing this, I finally let him go and he ran out my bedroom door. Linda stood up while handing me the ice pack.

"I should go. Just keep that on your bruise for a while and the swelling will go down."

"Thanks," I told her.

As she made her way to the door, it took everything I had to not call after her. Just as she reached the doorway, she turned back. Again wearing the smile as she spoke to me.

"I'll be looking for you at the Coliseum."

Only when I heard her go through the front door did I fall on my bed with a sigh.

"Whoa."


	5. Chapter 5

Chirping birds brought me out of my slumber. My eyes batted a few times before fully opening to a ray of sunlight that shined through the window. Stretching my tired muscles, I climbed out of bed before making my way over to the full body workout equipment. For the first time in months, I was able to lift again. Don't get me wrong, I still did basic bodyweight exercises back in the Pridelands to stay in shape. But this is the first time I've done it with state of the art stuff like this. All the weights in the gyms I used to go too were put to shame in what I had now.

After a solid hour of working out, I finally let out a large huff before dropping my arms. Beads of sweat ran down my forehead as I rose to go take a shower. Heavy beads of hot water added relief and woke me up. When I came out with a towel around my waist, I saw a fresh pair of clothes laid on my bed with a note on top of them. Picking it up, I recognized the handwriting immediately as my mom's.

'Be ready to impress them all.'

The smell of bacon and eggs hit my nostrils just as I slipped on the white tank top. I found my mom at the stove and my sister sitting at the table with a plate full of food in front of her. She looked up at me when she heard me step into the room.

"Look who's finally up mom," she said with a smirk.

My mom looked at me, "Good morning Lee, did you sleep well?"

I smiled, "Like a baby."

The taste of food cooked from a stove is something that I had almost forgotten about. But after almost half a year of my own cooking would make any other kind of food look like a five-star meal. I couldn't wipe the smile off my face as I took another bite of extra crispy bacon. With one last satisfying sigh, I wiped my face and brought my plate to the sink. I pulled my mom into a hug and kissed her cheek.

"Have I told you how much I've missed your cooking?"

She reached around and hugged me, "I know."

Both my grandparents and Kopa waited for me as I stepped out of my home. Kopa immediately ran up to me and nuzzled my leg. I picked him up and made my way to my grandparents. We all embraced before we started walking to the arena.

"Are you nervous?", grandma asked.

"A little bit," I said.

"Especially if Linda is there," Kopa spoke up.

I glared down at him, "Watch it."

Both Mufasa and Sarabi chuckled as we continued on. Every once in a while, we would pace people who would say hi to the three of them. Sarabi would occasionally introduce me with the proudest smile on her muzzle. Hard to believe she had only been here a few days and had already gotten to know so many people.

When we go to the arena, Randal and Logan were sparing together. They both looked like they were fighting with everything they had. Their lightning fast reflexes swung the swords they wielded. These weren't wooden swords like Sean and I used, this was steal that clanked together with each collision. It could have gone on for who knows how long until Randell disarmed Logan and sent his sword flying towards us. It was just about to hit Kopa, I turned to shield him before I heard metal hit something again.

I looked back to see the blade in between my grandmother's jaws. She stared daggers at the knight while walking over to him and dropping the sword at Randal's feet. The words she spoke next were filled with quiet rage.

"Please keep these swords from hitting my grandsons. For the sake of your health, I hope neither of them gets stabbed because of your incompetence."

"My apologies Sarabi," Randell said as he dipped his head in respect.

Then he turned to me. His brown hair that was usually slicked back was dripping with sweat and some of it hung in his face. His face looked very similar to that of a battle-scarred general. Someone who takes no crap and expects you to do everything by the book. Logan stood beside him, looking just as serious and exhausted. Randell stuck his hand out to me again.

"Hello again Lee, I understand you already met my star pupil, Logan. I am looking forward to teaching you and possibly be his equal one day. If you are as gifted as your grandparents say you are, then it may be sooner than I think."

"Thank you, Randell, I hope I won't let you down."

"However, I need you to know one thing," he said.

"What's that?" I asked.

"Can you control your temper?"

"My temper?"

"Yes, if you ever want to become a knight, you need to keep your emotions in check. Losing your temper could prove disastrous. From several of your fights, I saw you lose control. You can't allow that to happen if you learn from me. So I'll ask you again, can you control your temper?"

"I... I can try."

"Good, if you can, I will teach you everything I know. However, if you can't, I will not hesitate to dismiss you without a second's hesitation. Is that clear?"

"Cristal," I assured him.

"Good, let's get started."

With that, he went to the wooden weapons and pulled out two swords. Handing me one, he pointed the other at me. I awkwardly held this weapon in my hands, never having that much experience with swords.

"Um... I haven't had that much luck with swords. As you saw when I beat Sean, I am much better with a spear. Can't I just use what I am good at?"

He frowned, "How will you become a better warrior if you don't expand your horizon?"

"I'm already the best at what I have," I said in confidence.

He smiled as stroked his chin. With a chuckle, he went back to the rack and pulled out a spear before returning to me. After taking the sword back from me, he handed me the spear and walked over to Logan.

"I'll make you a deal, if you can Logan with your spear, I'll let you use whatever you choose. However, if he wins, you use swords until I say so, are we in agreement?" he asked.

I looked over at Logan, he wore an almost robotic face. As if he was designed for one purpose, fighting. Part of me wanted to decline, but a larger part of me demanded I stand my ground. Especially if Kopa was watching; what kind of big brother would I be if I backed down from a fight?

I nodded, "Deal."

Logan stuck his metal sword in the ground before taking the two training swords from Randel. He stood confidently in front of me with his weapons in hand. I braced myself and held my ground. Kopa's voice rang out from behind me.

"Let him have it Lee!" he cheered.

"Begin!" Randel commanded.

At a lightning-fast pace, Logan came at me with his sword raised. I barely had time to raise my spear to block his attack. I pushed off his swords away a swung for his stomach. He back stepped and swung with his left sword towards my head. I blocked it, only to feel a sudden pain in my stomach. Grunting, I barely hunched over and felt a hard smack on my left cheek.

My face hit the dirt as blood filled my mouth. I spat it out of my mouth before glaring up at him. Still wearing the same blank stare, he spoke to me for the first time.

"Do you yield?"

"Hell no!"

I tried thrusting the blunt end at his face, only for him to smack it away. Using the opportunity, I sprang to my feet and swung a second time. Once again, he blocked and hit me again in the face. Before I could even recover, he used his other sword to swipe my feet from under me and I was once again on the ground.

The pointy end of his sword was under my chin. At this point, I felt a sudden rush of deja vu wash over me. It was like fighting Rafiki for the first time all over again. He had me beat, and he knows it. Raising my hands, I accepted defeat.

"You win," I said.

He extended his hand to me. I raised my eyebrows in surprise before taking it and being pulled to my feet. Randel made his way over to us with a serious look on his face. Straightening my back, I turned to face him.

"He won. And if I'm anything, I'm a man of my word. I'll learn to use a sword."

"Wonderful."

(Kion's POV)

"Look at me."

I lifted my tear stained eyes up to look at my grandma, who wore a look of disappointment. We were way in the back of the cave where no one could hear us. Not that anyone would pay much attention anyway.

"I am very disappointed in how you spoke to Jason. He has done nothing but good things for us since he came here and does not deserve that kind of treatment."

"Nothing but good things?" I asked, "Like getting Lee killed?"

"The one who did that is dead."

"If Jason was such a good warrior, he wouldn't have needed Lee to save him."

"You can't blame Jason for that Kion."

"Why not? If Jason never came here, Lee would still be alive."

"Oh, I think I know what this is about. Your not angry at Jason, you're angry because you miss Lee."

My face got hot as tears threatened to spill over. Her features got slightly less angry at the sight of my fragile state. She kneeled down and nuzzled me before rising again and speaking to me.

"Kion, honey, I know how much you miss Lee. We all miss him, but we can't take it out on innocent people. You don't see me treating Jason like that, do you?"

"Then you didn't love him as much as I did!"

In a split second, she switched from loving and caring to bloodthirst and terrifying. With a loud snarl, she hovered over me with her teeth bared and eyes narrowed. It felt like my heart was about to stop completely as I gazed upon this unfamiliar creature. Whereas it was rare to see my mom look this scary, I never saw my grandma like this before. She scolded and got angry, but this was something different. And it was downright terrifying! My bottom lip quivered as I whimpered quietly. With a finale angered huff, she grabbed me roughly with her jaws and walked over to a dark corner of the cave and dropped me down. She then spoke with a voice filled with rage.

"Maybe going to bed with an empty stomach will teach you how to behave."

"Grandma... I didn't-"

"I don't want to hear it! How dare you claim that I didn't love your brother enough because I don't hate the person that tries to save us! There will be no more of your attitude towards Jason, and until you make amends to him, you can stay in this corner for the rest of the week!"

With that, she stormed away before I could even respond. I felt my head get heavy as tears finally fell from my eyes. Laying my head down, I tried to just shut my eyes and sleep through my hunger and grief. Sadly, I couldn't sleep. For two hours straight, I just rolled around and stared at the walls. The words of not only my grandma and my own rang in my head.

"Trouble sleeping?"

I jumped in sudden fear as I looked up at Jason. He kneeled down with a look of slight concern. Remembering my grandma's words, I wouldn't dare just order him away like I would before. All I did was put my head back down and shut my eyes. When I heard him walking away, I spoke without opening my eyes.

"I'm sorry."

Grandma was right. Every time I replayed her words in my head, I knew they were true. With that came the realization of what a jerk I was. He has always been nice to me, and I just turned him away.

His footsteps stopped before getting closer. When I opened my eyes again, he was right in front of me. All he did at first was stare at me. I was on edge as he stretched his hand out, and I braced myself to get hit. It was what I deserved. So you could imagine my surprise when I felt a gentle touch on top of my head. Jason ruffled my mane just like Lee used to. Fresh tears almost dropped at the mear memory of him.

"It's okay buddy."

"No, it's not." I cried "My brother's gone and he's never coming back! But you don't deserve what I said, I'm so sorry!"

I felt him pick me up and walk for a while. At first, I couldn't see where he was taking me, but when I finally wiped my eyes I saw. The tree where Lee and his human family were buried. He sat down and placed me right in front of Lee's grave.

I turned to him," Why did you bring me here?"

"I heard that it's sometimes comforting to talk to the graves of your loved ones. Maybe it can help you feel better. Just talk to his grave like he was standing right in front of you."

Sighing, I turned back to my brother's grave. A lump was caught in my throat as I searched for the words to tell him. Finally, after clearing my throat I spoke from my heart.

"Hi, Lee... I don't know if you can hear me right now. It's me, Kion, I hope you're doing okay, wherever you are. I'm sure... t-that... grandma Sarabi's happy to see you. But I miss you, big brother. We all really miss you. Mom hasn't stopped crying since we buried you. Dad won't talk to me. The girls and I just lay around all day, not wanting to do anything. Why... Why did you have to leave!"

Hitting my paw against the dirt on his grave, all my emotions exploded with that punch and the ones that followed. I screamed and sobbed as I hit the ground so hard and so many times, my paws started to bleed. Salty tears that fell from my eyes dropped on my fresh cuts and burned like small fires. Before long, I was so spent I just fell flat on my face and lay there. My loud sobs eventually turned into quiet snivels as Jason, who had been silently watching the whole thing go down, came to sit down next to me.

He once again placed his hand on my head and gently patted it in a comforting motion. The sudden affection caused me to want more, I dove towards him and landed on his lap. The sudden move must have taken him by surprise, awkwardly clearing his throat before continuing to comfort me. It wasn't Lee, but he was there, and that's what mattered. I eventually stopped crying and just lay on his lap.

"Feeling better?" he asked.

"Kind of, I don't know how I'm going to be able to get through life without him. It's like a large part of my life died with him."

"Well, you can start by making sure he didn't die for nothing. He loves you and he wouldn't want you to go on sulking and being sad all the time. It's okay to miss him but don't let the grief consume you. Just like he told you."

"Thanks, Jason."

"Come on, let's go before they start to worry."

I went back over to Lee's grave. determined to get one last thing off my chest.

"I promise Lee, I won't let your sacrifice go to waste. I'll live my life to the fullest, for you."

The events of today were now starting to get to me. My feet started to get heavy before I felt myself being lifted off the ground. Jason let me rest on his arms as he walked back to Pride Rock. When we did get there, he set me down in the corner and started to walk away.

"Wait!"

He turned back, "What is it?"

"Can you... sleep next to me, please? Lee always used to let me sleep on his chest."

He didn't do anything at first. This may have been asking too much of him, considering he always said he didn't want to be part of a family. I prepared for him to say no thank you and walk away. Then he did something I never expected, he smiled fondly and made his way back over to me. He laid down next to me and placed me on his chest. It felt nice, not anything like Lee, do to the fact that Jason is half Lee's size. However, he was there for me, I finally felt good again.

"Good night Jason."

"Goodnight kiddo."

 **A/N: What's up Everybody! It's good to be back in the world of fanfiction! You can all stop worrying, I'm clearly not dead. I have had a few tough weeks, been busy working and when I wasn't working, I was watching my younger brother. And I was admittedly kind of lazy. I am sorry for the unusually long wait, and I won't lie, it may be a while for the next one. But I promise I won't give up on this. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, give me a review or PM me if you got an idea. See you all around!**


	6. Chapter 6

"Keep trying, it just takes practice." Linda encouraged.  
I was taking a break from getting my butt kicked by Logan to try my hand at archery. And I would be lying if I also didn't want to be near her again. Just like always, she looked like she stepped out of a modeling shoot. Instead of her hair being tied back, it was falling flat against her back. I must have been staring too much because she waved her hand against my face and whistled to get my attention. When I blinked and shook my head, she giggled in a way that would make me do anything to hear it all day.  
"Did you say something?" I asked.  
"I said, 'Try taking a breath before firing to steady your aim."  
I knocked another arrow on the string of my bow and did as she said. She moved inches from my face and placed her hand gently on my abdomen. Using her other to raise my arm correctly, Linda instructed me to release.  
"Loose," she commanded.  
The arrow flew through the air and hit the ring furthest from the bullseye. Hey, it was better then the previous six I fired that flew into the stadium. Linda actually applauded my terrible shot.  
"Well done," she said.  
"Yeah, nice job." called a voice I instantly recognized. I turned to see Sean walking towards us. He still had that same angered scowl on his face.  
"I heard my brother wiped the floor with you earlier. He may be Randel's best pupil, but he's still nowhere near knight level. What kind of chance do you think you have if you can't beat him?"  
I was about to respond only for Linda to beat me to the punch.  
"He beat you didn't he? What does that say about you?"  
I snickered at her remark. And even more so when I saw Sean's face get a sunburn shade of red. Not so much when I heard his response to her defending me.  
"Why don't you shut up and go play with your bow, little bitch."  
That familiar feeling came over me when I heard him disrespect her like that. Almost as similar as when he did the same to Sarabi yesterday. I nearly took a step forward only to have Linda grab my wrist firmly and grab my face with her hand. Then, right in front of Sean, her lips crashed on mine. I was a bit surprised by her sudden act but didn't dare pull away from her. We stayed that way for almost a full ten seconds before coming up for air.  
To add insult to injury, Linda looked Sean right in the eye and gave him a solid middle finger before grabbing me and walking towards the privacy of the armory.


	7. Chapter 7

We were inches apart as my head was spinning from the kiss we shared only minutes ago. I was debating whether to go for another when she put her finger up to stop me.  
"What you almost did to Sean was stupid."  
"I can take care of Sean; you saw me do it before."  
"If Randel sees you lose control just once; he won't teach you. And he's the best knight here."  
She was right. Randel is my only chance for a future as a knight. One slip up and that would be the end of it. Linda raised her eyebrows with a grin when she knew I got it.  
"So, why did you kiss me?"  
She frowned slightly "I wanted to stop you from doing something stupid."  
"Oh," I said with a frown.  
Feeling her hand grab mine sent a rush of joy through my body. My eyes locked with her's made my frown shift into a smile. Her pearly white smile could put the sun to shame.  
"The other reason is I want to get to know you," she stated.  
An idea popped into my head, "Okay what are you doing tonight?"  
She raised her eyebrows again, "Are you asking me out?"  
"Depends, what's your answer?"  
After thinking it over for an agonizingly long minute, she shrugged and nodded.  
"Sure, why not?"  
"What restaurants are good around here?"  
"To be honest, it's been a while since I've gone on a picnic. And the nights here are gorgeous."  
"Alright, I can see if my mom can make something for us."  
"Oh, don't have your mom go to the trouble. I can make us something for the both of us. What do you like?"  
"Hmm. I do like good fried chicken."  
"Sounds good, I'll see you tonight."  
"What time?" I asked.  
She smiled, "When the stars come out."  
Back at my house, I was slipping on a blue dress shirt and Khakis. After splashing on some cologne, I poked my head through the door. Seeing no one nearby made me sigh in relief. It's just I didn't want anyone to know what I was doing for the time being. Especially Linda or Kopa after the stunt they pulled when we were together in my room.  
With one last deep breath, I speed-walked to the front door. A small smile crept up on my face as I was inches from the door. Then a sudden voice from the back of the room stopped me in my tracks.  
"Where might you be going this late at night?"  
My nerves slightly settled as I recognized my grandma's voice. I turned to see her laying down on the couch. It would be much easier to tell her about this as opposed to my mom; who would just hammer me with questions until I run out the door.  
I cleared my throat, "Just out."  
She chuckled, "Just out, in an outfit like that?"  
"Okay, I... have a date."  
"A date? Hmmm, who's the lucky girl?" she asked with a smirk.  
I felt myself blush as I answered, "Linda."  
"Linda? Oh, congratulations Lee! You know I always thought she liked you."  
"Really?"  
"Of course, she was sneaking looks at you all throughout dinner the other night. You probably didn't notice because you were busy paying attention to her."  
"Huh, listen, if anyone comes by, don't tell them where I am. Especially if it's Jenny or Kopa, okay?"  
"I'll be as silent as the grave. Now go have fun; just don't stay out all night."  
"Deal."  
I came to a small pond away from the city. The forest that hid this place was a few feet away from a blanket with a full picnic basket and another heavenly form. Said heavenly form was Linda in a blood red silk dress that dipped rather low. Despite that, however, her face stole my gaze and kept it there.  
I smiled sheepishly, "Am I late?"  
"You're right on time."  
Sitting down across from her, I tried to make sure not to drool over her like I did the other night. That proved all the more difficult when I caught the scent of fried chicken coming from the basket. Linda brought out that, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, and corn. Everything looked exceptionally delicious. I couldn't catch my breath as I bit into the chicken.  
"Oh, my God."  
she giggled, "I'll take that a sign that I did well."  
"You did very well." I agreed.  
We continued to eat and talk for half an hour. Linda told me about how she grew up in the countryside and her father abandoned both her and her mother when she was five. Her mother brought Linda up on her own and taught her how to hunt with a bow. And obviously taught her how to cook amazing food.  
I patted my stomach when I finally finished and gazed at the sky. Linda was right about the nights here looking outstanding. It could be just as if not more lovely then any night in the Pridelands.  
"Beautiful, isn't it?" Linda asked.  
She was staring at the sky. The light of the moon making her skin shine and her hair shimmer. Her blue eyes never leaving the sky. I couldn't take my eyes off her.  
"Yeah," I said  
She turned to look at me. I almost turned my gaze away, but her smile kept it there.  
"Beautiful." I sighed.  
Linda chuckled slightly before placing her hand on mine. The warmth of her skin spread throughout my entire body in an instant. I slowly moved my head closer to hers. She blinked several times before inching closer to me as well. Our lips crashed together just like in the arena. We didn't separate for fifteen seconds this time. I grabbed her hips and pulled her onto my lap. Giggling at the sudden move, Linda flipped her raven black hair out of her face before kissing me again. Her hands slowly began to unbutton my dress shirt.  
"Wait!" I said while turning away; causing her to kiss my cheek.  
I locked eyes with her, "Are you sure?"  
She closed her eyes and smiled, "Yes."

A/N: Hey everyone! I hope you enjoy this chapter. But I really wanted to just let you know I am taking a short break from this story. Don't worry, I have no plans to cancel it, but I will be briefly trying a new topic. What will it be? A story featuring Telltale's "The Walking dead" I recently saw the trailer for the final season and I can't get it out of my head! So I will be trying my hand at writing about the zombie apocalypse. If this interests you, I would so appreciate it if you check it out when the first chapter pops up. Until then, Leave a review and I'll see you all later!


	8. Chapter 8

I woke up the next morning in my bed. Not even remembering how I ended up hear after the picnic last night. With a slight frown, I began to think that what happened last night was a dream. That theory was immediately halted when I turned over. Right beside me, still sound asleep, was Linda. Her black hair a jumbled mess, and there was a small line of drool coming from the corner of her mouth. Despite that, she still looked like an ideal image of an angel. A pounding sensation came from my head that caused me to fall against my pillow again. Sadly, this isn't the first time I have suffered from hangovers, especially right after Jenny and my mom died.

The sudden movement caused Linda to turn around before slowly opening her eyes.

She smiled, "Good morning."

"Hi.", was all I managed to get out.

Linda giggled happily before pushing the hair out of her eyes and resting her head on my chest. I smiled down at her as I wrapped my left arm around her body.

"Last night was... amazing," she said.

"It was my first," I admitted.

"Mine too."

Her lips connected with mine before resting her head back down and snuggling closer to me. All we did was lay together in silence for a solid fifteen minutes. I could honestly say I could do this all day and be happy. She got around to asking me more about my life; particularly my time in the Pridelands. Wanting to know how I was able to be comfortable not just without technology; but the only human. I told her that all the creatures were so welcoming, I almost didn't notice.

"They must have been really good to you."

"They were," I agreed.

A frown formed on my face when I thought about them again. With everything going on I never had a chance to really reflect on them since I got here. But once I did, almost immediate regret and sorrow followed. The thought of Kion, Kiara, Tiifu, and Zuri not having me there to comfort them through Sarabi's passing. Nala and Sarafina can't be much better right now. Simba has completely changed for the worse since coming back to Pride Rock.

Linda cupped my cheek with her hand and turned my eyes towards hers. She slid her thumb across a tear that fell from my eye.

"What's the matter?"

"I just wish I didn't have to leave them so soon. I am happy here; it's just I would give anything to see them again."

She smiled slightly, "Focus on getting through your training. I'm sure they know you wouldn't leave them on purpose. You can still do great things, do it for them."

Kissing me one last time; Linda threw the sheets off her body and walked to the bathroom. I mentally gave myself a pat on the back as her nude body disappeared behind the door. As the shower started up, I stood and searched for some clothes. Finally, I decided to dress in a black tank top and jeans.

Five minutes later I heard the shower turn off. Deciding to make good use of my time, I laid on my bench and began doing reps. While I was doing a round of pull-ups; I heard the bathroom door open. Linda came in and spoke to me.

"Can I ask you a question?"

"You just did," I said with a chuckle.

"Very funny. Did you used to have long hair?"

"Yeah, I had been growing it out since middle school."

"Why did you cut it?"

"I... just never felt the same after I mercy killed Sarabi. So I didn't want to have something that reminded me of the old me. But it was something I kind of regret doing now."

My mind drifted to what I used to look like. Back when my hair was one of my most cherished traits about myself. I know it's almost silly to care so much about your hair, but I had put years into it.

A sudden gasp from behind me made me stop my pull-ups and look over my shoulder. Linda stood frozen with wide eyes as her face got white. Almost as if she had seen a spirit rise up from the grave. Without saying a word, she shakingly put her hands on me and guided me into the bathroom. After I saw my image in the mirror, I fell against Linda who had to hold me up. Staring directly back at me was the long-haired version of myself. As if I had never cut it at all.

"You-you're one of them," Linda said.

"One of what?" I asked

Without saying a word, she grabbed me by the arm and pulled me out of the room and out the front door. She didn't let go until we came to a house at the end of the road. As we stepped through the front door, we were greeted by a room full of people. Mufasa and Sarabi stood by the side of Randell. Mom and Jenny were sitting on a couch in the corner of the room. Standing right across from Randell was a man I had never seen before. He looked to be a little younger than Randell. With short brown hair, matching eyes, and a muscular upper body littered with scars. An unshaken and savage look in his eyes. If I had to guess, he had seen a dozen battles and come out alive.

Sarabi was the first to speak to me, "Lee... your hair. How did it get long again?"

I shrugged, "I have no idea."

Linda smiled at me, "Lee's one of them."

"One of what?" I repeated.

"Really? That's incredible!" Sarabi exclaimed.

"One of what?"

"Awesome, you're one of them, Lee!" Jenny said.

I looked at her, "One of what?

"Oh Lee, I can't believe you're one of them."

"Hey! One of what?!" I exploded.

Mufasa stepped up, "Lee, you're a shapeshifter."

I looked down at him, "A what?"

"A shapeshifter you have the ability to change your form. With practice, you can do it at will."

Randell walked up with the stranger at his side. Now that they stood side by side, I saw that the stranger was a few inches taller. The scars looked more gruesome up close.

Randell spoke to me, "Lee, it is my honor to introduce to you..."

The stranger put his hand on Randell's shoulder. All he did was shake his head and look back at me. He stuck his hand out to me, that's when I saw it. There was a brand on the inside of his right forearm. A black capital "B" that looked as if it had been there for years.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Lee. I am Spartacus. "

"Spartacus? As in the Spartacus? The Spartacus who led an army against the Roman empire for a fight against slavery? That Spartacus?

He nodded, "The same."

It's as if I couldn't find my voice. I was shaking hands with one of the most famous warriors in history. A man who led an army of Gladiators against one of the most powerful forces of his time.

"It is honestly such an honor to meet you, sir," I said as I shook his hand faster.

He chuckled, "The honor is all mine. The tales of your courage in battle have never been far from my ears."

"Well, if a legend such as yourself has heard about me, I must be doing something right."

"We should get going, Lee. There's a full day of training ahead." Randell stated.

He turned to Spartacus, "Will you be joining us?"

Spartacus shook his head, "I would like to, but I haven't picked up a sword in years."

"Oh, please come with us." I pleaded, " You are one of the most famous warriors in recorded history."

"Well..." he considered.

"Spartacus," Mufasa said, "It would be a great service if you come to the arena. Lee might learn a thing or two from you."

Spartacus looked at me, "Is that what you want?"

I nodded, "Very much."

He sighed, "Very well."

When we arrived at the arena, everyone was already training. Logan and Sean were training with four other guys around their age. The two of them looked like they were having a walk in the park, while the four others were giving it their all. Logan had disarmed two of them in seconds and knocked them to the ground. Sean was facing a guy about to swing at him. He used the moment to grab his arm and flip him onto his back. Just as the last man standing was about to strike Sean in the head, Logan smacked him good in the face.

"They are really good," I said.

"They aren't bad," Spartacus said.

Logan was the first to notice us. He had just finished helping up the last man before sticking his sword in the dirt and making his way over to all of us. Sean didn't follow him, just stood there with the scowl he always wore when he looked at me.

"It's good to see you again," as he shook hands with Spartacus, then me.

Spartacus chuckled, "I decided to come by and see how you all are fairing."

"Well, you're always welcome here. Lee, pick up that sword, you're sparing with Sean today."

I groaned inwardly as I pulled the sword out of the dirt and faced Sean. Facing him with a spear was one thing, but with a sword was another matter entirely. It was something I had little experience with, and Sean knew it. The man smiled wickedly as he stood ready to fight. Even if I went down, I was going to make it hard for him.

"You're in my world now, friend," he said the last word with disgust.

In a moment of slight rage, I lunged for him. He easily blocked my attack and smacked me hard on the cheek. A fierce burning sensation erupted on my face as I shook my head. Suddenly his sword came crashing down on my face a second time. When he tried for a third strike, I blocked and with everything I had, shoved him backward.

He stumbled back and nearly fell on his butt. Using the moment, I ran towards him with my sword raised. Once again, he blocked me easily and hit me, this time in the stomach. With a loud groan, I bent slightly as a knee came into contact with my face. The force caused me to fall flat on my back. Sean stuck his sword near my face, the same wicked, smug look on his features.

"How does it feel to be on the other end of a beatdown, huh?" he asked.

I kicked him in the right leg and quickly stumbled to my feet. After regaining his footing, he came at me again. Two times he swung at me, both times I match his strikes. Just as I was getting the hang of it, he blocked my attack and hit me with an uppercut. My sword flew out of my hand as I found myself once again on my back.

Despite my blurry vision, I tried to feel around for my sword. Only for Sean to put his foot on my arm and me to cry quietly in pain. Just as he was about to beat my face bloody with the sword, another one blocked it and made him stop immediately. I looked up at Spartacus, who protected me from Sean's wrath.

"Alright, you've made your point," Spartacus said.

He knocked the weapon out of Sean's hand before grabbing my arm and pulling me to my feet. A sudden cry caused us to look back to see Sean come at us again. At a lightning fast pace, Spartacus kicked up the sword I dropped and caught it in his hands to block his attack. Sean got angry and swung with great fury. Spartacus effortlessly dodged all the attacks that came his way. Three of the men that sparred with Sean and Logan minutes ago stepped forward. Spartacus did notice, but he didn't look alarmed in the slightest. He, in fact, smiled slightly and motioned them to come at him.

Two of them came at him from the left; while Sean and the other one came at him straightforward. Spartacus managed to block two of the men with one sword while he deflected the sword of the guy standing next to Sean. The sword hit Sean in the face. I bit back a chuckle as I watched this beast of a warrior demolish all four of them. He pocked Sean in the stomach while he smacked both the soldiers on the left side so hard, they fell down. Sean and the guy next to him tried swinging in unison, but now Spartacus could use both swords. He blocked both swords and smacked the other soldier in the stomach with the side of one of his. The guy groaned in pain while Spartacus smacked him in the face, sending him sprawling to the ground.

The only one left standing was Sean, and he knew it. Despite seeing him take down three men with almost no effort, something I don't think even Logan can pull off, Sean still lunged forward. Spartacus blocked his attack with one sword and smacked him in the face with another. It ended when Logan threw his little brother in a full nelson and demanded he drop his sword.

While practically dragging Sean away from everyone, Logan called over his shoulder.

"Looks like you still got it, Spartacus."

Spartacus chuckled while turning to me. He threw one of the sparing swords up in the air and caught it as he walked up to me, who had watched the whole fight with an open mouth. He noticed my shocked expression and his smile dipped into a frown.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"You're... amazing!" I said in awe.

He smiled sheepishly, "Thank you."

I walked side by side with him. Still trying to replay the whole scene in my head. Every motion Spartacus took with the sword was like he was painting a picture. If that was how he fought after not picking up a sword for years; I would hate to go up against him in his prime. An invisible lightbulb lit up in my head that caused a smile to stretch across my face. Dashing in front of him, I put my hands up to get his attention.

"Could you teach me?" I asked.

He chuckled, "What?"

"Teach me," I repeated, "You took down all four of them without breaking a sweat. I would money on Logan not being able to do that. So can you please teach me to fight like you?"

He chuckling face vanished as he now wore a frown once again. I copied his face as I saw him change in an instant. Spartacus sighed before placing his right hand on my shoulder and speaking to me.

"You seem like a good lad. I'm sure you make a good student, but I don't teach anyone."

"Oh, come on, please?" I tried again, "With your skills, I can become the best knight here."

His face went through several phases. Until he returned the frown on his face and shook his head slowly.

"I'm sorry my boy, teaching isn't for me. Just continue your training with Randell, and you'll be a knight in no time."

With that, Spartacus turned and headed for the exit. Part of me wanted to go after him. Maybe convince him I would be easy to teach; even if he wasn't used to teaching. Mufasa stepped in front of me just as Spartacus walked out the door.

"Get back to your training Lee, Randell will guide you on the right path."

I sighed sadly, "Yeah."


End file.
